Pit Stop Frustration

OK, this is what's just happened. I comprehensively out qualified my team mate, Trulli at Lotus after being behind him for the best part of the season and I started 10th at Hockenheim. I had a good start and went into the second lap in eleventh place, with Trulli miles behind in nineteenth. All of a sudden, Trulli's somehow caught up to 13th (without any indication that other cars had pitted or anything). Now the really annoying part: it's my turn to pit, so in I go and my eleventh becomes twelfth, becomes thirteenth and so on. I rejoin in 23rd.

Now at this point, I'm not too fussed - I've been watching F1 since 1991 and I know that when one guy goes in the pits and falls all the way down the field, if the field is tightly packed, he'll go back up the field, at least somewhat, when the guys ahead pit. The laps passed, and still I'm in 23rd. Midrace approaches, still 23rd. End of the race, 20th. What the hell is going on? Surely I should've regained at least some of my lost places after my pitstop? I wasn't making any mistakes and was keeping the drivers that were below me at arm's length. 100% race, no fuel sim, tyre sim on. I feel as though I've just been screwed by the game out of a decent result.

Have other people had such experiences and if so, are there any mods that make the AI pit properly in 100% races? No way in hell should I have finished that 20th!

Edit: Thanks to the mods for editing my title - I was so annoyed, so I just called it 'what the hell' to start with!

So you've experienced it as well. Bit of a gamebreaker for me - I hadn't noticed it before, because until now, I was always pottering around at the back of the grid - today, I began to learn in earnest how to set my car up thus the marked improvement in placing! Priority fix for 2011, Codies - it goes without saying.

Premium Member

Well this has only really had an effect this season as I have upped the ante and I am running expert mode. The annoying thing is I am not losing pace or consistency, but one minute I'm doing great, the next minute I'm rubbish... It's rubbish.

I have also noticed this on Expert mode! I can keep position while racing but after pitting everybody (and their dogs) passes me. I find it helps to pit 1 lap earlier than the "recommended strategy" but it is still difficult to keep up and regain spots lost. I am sure things would be different if we had to do more stops but until I try the Pirelli tyres mod I just play on Professional AI for now.

Its frustrating but at the same time, its possible. Just like in real life, a driver may be fast but the track condition and behavior/obstacle of other drivers also has to factor in. Which is why sometime we do see top driver like Hamilton ends with a DNF *Singapore GP*.

I hate it too honestly speaking.

But which track do you have that issue?

I know for sure that in Catalunya. Even when you're holding in first position. The moment you pit, you will definitely end up in the 20th and there will be no way to catch up.

Premium Member

I have also noticed this on Expert mode! I can keep position while racing but after pitting everybody (and their dogs) passes me. I find it helps to pit 1 lap earlier than the "recommended strategy" but it is still difficult to keep up and regain spots lost. I am sure things would be different if we had to do more stops but until I try the Pirelli tyres mod I just play on Professional AI for now.

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I tried this but then the tyres don't make it to the end, inalso tried stopping late but the tyres drop off to quick in the extra lap. Either way it's annoying!

I've had it happen to me many times - I go in to the pits in around 8th - 12th, come out last never to see the field again.

I think playing at 100% race distance puts the player at too much of a disadvantage and highlights the inadequecies of the sim. I don't think the AIs tires go off as quick as yours - in fact do they at all? It's certainly hard to tell. Also, I usually find the timing infomation pretty useless. Why not a simple split time - time infront, time behind?

i've had the same thing happen, i out qualified my teammate by a lot, i was 12th, he was 19th.... first two laps i get up to 8th place and somehow my teammate got up to right behind me... i don't see how that could happen... and worse is when you pit with AI's and unless the entire pitlane behind you is clear, your team won't let you go.

Right. I was really hoping this was an isolated incident, but it appears many of you have experienced it. Here's why I think it's happening:

The individual AI are not running actual strategies as the player has to. Why should they? Their tyres do not wear, not as I've noticed - so why stop for new ones? I think Codies have some pit every now and then just to make it look like everything is going as it should be, when it's quite plainly not. If the AI's tyres took wear and tear like the player's do, then I am positive they'd pit properly and at the right times.

Running 100% races is the way I have always played F1 - any less and it doesn't feel like F1! This issue has made me lean towards holding fire on F1 2011 and awaiting a few player reviews before buying. It's so frustrating - when I've been in some close battles with another car, it's been the most thrilling racing I've ever experienced - but then things like this happen and make me ask myself what the point of playing is, if I'm always going to be screwed over by the game when I have to pit.

Turning my own tyre wear off is simply not an option, as it turns the game into an arcade game, especially when using a steering wheel. It would be boring beyond belief, especially in a 100% race.

I reckon I'll hold fire on F1 2011 and if there isn't solid evidence of a level playing field across all areas from tyre/fuel sim right through to penalties being awarded, I might give it a miss.

OK, so just now I was racing in Hungary, where the pitstops seemed to be working more like they should - after my stop, I saw a few bunches of cars sitting in the pits as I went past. However, three of them seemed to be permanently stuck in the pits - including my rival. Shame my team mate wasn't one of them as well.

So maybe the pitstops are working properly at some tracks, but not at others?

To me the whole pit stop thing still stinks. Running in expert mode I'll come in and lose 8 or 9 places because I'm held in the pits for as much as 14 seconds or so. I thought at one time they were supposed to fix this problem with an update but I guess they've abandoned this game long ago to start on F2011.